Broke Girls DIY: Tank Top

Summer is HERE! Why not try out the ever-so-popular DIY tank-top? I love this look, especially with summer approaching.

I DON’T love this look when people seem to take “tank” a little too far…

Thanks, J-Woww.

Dear God- a little “fashionable” side boob does not entitle you to look like you’re borrowing AC Slater’s wresting uniform. For the sake of your dignity, and your friends… less is more in this case. You can always try it on, and go back and cut more.

I was browsing through one of my favorite thrift stores in LA and bought this T-shirt for $6.99. I’ve been missing NYC lately… so I thought this would be perfect for my DIY tank top project:

*HELPFUL HINT: When you’re creating these type of tank tops it’s always better to buy 1 size larger, or at least make sure that the shirt is 2-3 inches longer in length than what you’re normally used to when wearing a T-shirt.*

Here’s a step-by-step of how to make this type of tank:1. First Step: Sleeves. Sleeves, rather. (Do NOT throw the sleeves away just yet!)
When cutting off the sleeves; I cut from the shoulder 1.5-2 inches from the neckline, to a spot about 5 inches below the armpit.

Once you’ve cut one side, fold the T-shirt directly down the middle so you can make sure both sides look alike.

Voila! Kidding. Not done yet. Now you just have a regular tank…

2. Next, cut off the neck of the T-shirt and the bottom seam of the T-Shirt. *HELPFUL HINT: The shirt I’m doing is a vneck, but I find crew-neck T-shirts come out a bit better.*

3. Now, grab the sleeves you cut off and cut off that small piece of fabric to the left of the sleeve in Image #1. It’ll be like a fabric circle, so cut one of the seams so that it’s a strip of fabric. When this is stretched out, it looks like a rope. This will be the material you use to gather the back of the tank top (#3). *Helpful Hint- it doesn’t matter if you cut jagged on any part of the tank.. Once you put it on and give a little pull, where the armpits are… the cut fabric will naturally roll, making a perfectly even seam*

Image #1

Image #2

4. Pull the fabric of the material (#2 above) that looks like a rope, up to the top of back of the t-shirt. (ONLY the back panel of the t-shirt) Gather that material together and begin tying simple 1/2 knots, one after the other. Once you get a few knots on there- it’ll start to resemble a braid/rope.

Image #3

See how simple? This is what you should end up with…

Final Product!

TA-DA! I apologize for the backdrop… it’s my living room carpet, aka my home office. As much as I would love to replace the carpet in my rented apt.. not really on in my budget range right now… BUT it is where all my best ideas come to fruition!

7 thoughts on “Broke Girls DIY: Tank Top”

Hey Jessica h – The easiest way to figure out where to cut your sleeves is to put on the t-shirt and mark how thick you want the tank’s straps to be and how low cut do you want the sides. You can use a pencil to mark where to cut, that way it’ll come right out with a little soap and water. Once you cut the first sleeve off, fold the t-shirt over in half and mark where you should cut the second sleeve off. This is an easy way to make sure both sides are symmetrical. Does this help?

Hey Alicia- Sorry for the delay! You want to start at the top of the neckline. Some shirts are a little different depending on the fabric you use, so I’d start by tying a tester knot, then try on the tank. That way you can see how high the knots start on the back and alter it to your liking. As a little trick- you can also tie the knot and then trim the remaining fabric of the t-shirt as well if you want to make the strips thinner.